Classification · Italy
1750 – 1825
Legnago - Vienna
Review
Orphan at age 15 was taken to Vienna by Gassmann in 1766. He made a brilliant career in the court of Joseph II, of which he became a chapel master in 1788, and also triumphed in Paris with Les Danaïdes and Tarare.
He was an exceptional teacher: his students included Beethoven, Schubert, Liszt, Czerny and Meyerbeer. The legend of his mortal rivalry with Mozart, popularized by Pushkin and the film Amadeus, has no historical foundation.
Main works
- Opera Les Danaïdes (1784)
- Opera Prima la musica e poi le parole (1786)
- Opera La grotta di Trophonio (1785)
- Tarare Opera (1787) / Axur, re d'Ormus (1788)
- Concert for piano in major (1773)
- Concert for flute and oboe in major (1774)
- Réquiem en do minor (1804)
